Ukulele Music Group Singapore Entertains PM Lee Hsien Loong: Anna Law

My ukulele group, GYUS performing at PM Lee Hsien Loong's 

garden party at Gardens by the Bay in 2017. PM sang,

'The Young Ones'.

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Anna Law, solo on stage, performing at Chevy 57 in Katong, 

East Coast with Leonard, lead guitarist of band, That's Life.

GYUS on stage: 10 May, 2018 @ a graduation function 

organised by The Ministry of Health.

GYUS performed at Changi Airport in 2017, 

around the Christmas season.

GYUS performed at Changi Airport in 2017, 

around the Christmas season.

The Teepees... question is, which one is Anna?

Anna with Peter Chua at Sentosa Island

Anna Law leads the Ukulele group GYUS 

with 'The Young Ones' and 'Let's Twist Again', 

during a Passion Fiesta performance in 2016.

Mr. and Mrs. Vincent Tan have been in touch with me since we last met for a huge lunch they provided after a successful pop music show in 2019. I wrote recently to ask Mrs. Tan [a.k.a. Anna Law from girl group, The Teepees] if she could do an article on her famous ukulele group that had been hitting the headlines for some time.  Anna is not only a talented musician and singer but a poet and an artist too. Below is her recollection. Thanks so much dear Anna.

Hi Andy,

If music be the food of love, play on. Music is my passion and it might stem from the fact that I come from a musically inclined family, Hawaiian guitarist dad, pianist mum and 2 brothers, Daniel and David who played professionally on the guitar and piano, respectively. I was from Katong Convent School and love to write and compose poems too 😀. With the family and self introduction done, I will proceed with my own music path.

I will talk briefly about my music career with my band, a 4 piece all- group called The Teepees. I was a guitarist/ singer with the other 3 girls on the keyboard, bass and drums. We had contracts in Singapore and Malaysia. Sadly, due to family commitments, we had to disband and parted  ways. 

But many years later, we were approached by Jerry Fernandez from The Neu Faces to perform at the Concert Hall, Esplanade. That was in 2012. We were quite hesitant as we had lost touch with our instruments. After much persuasion, we decided to give it a try and practised relentlessly. Years later we were asked to perform at Pek Kio CC. 

That was our last gig. We moved on with our lives. I moved on and continued with my passion for music. 

A Date With Friends 14th March 2019 at the Esplanade. 

The lady in green kebaya is Anna Law. Listen to DIANA, HOUND DOG & other hits. Also their original Teochew Song. Video from: johnsonchusc

It was in 2012 when I took over the helm of the ukulele group, GYUS ( The Golden Years Ukulele Strummers) from my Instructor who succumbed to an illness, and with 13 members in tow. 

Initially, I was reluctant to take over the baton from him, but after much persuasion and consideration, and support from my husband, Vincent, I decided to give it a shot. It was from word of mouth and the members, mainly Seniors, grew to a hundred and more. Jamming sessions were held weekly at a Community Club (CC). It was a happy sight to see them letting their hair down, strumming and belting out songs from yesteryear. 

We had a lot of performances. We were honoured to perform before President Tony Tan at the Istana, at VIP functions attended by the PM, Lee Hsien Loong and the Ministers. Our last ukulele performance was at the Concourse, Esplanade. The Teochew song which we played on that day went viral. Can you believe that? For the Teochew song, I listened to the clip sung by Peter Chua. No lyrics were provided. So I painstakingly listened to the song and wrote down my own lyrics and put in the chords.

We are not going to “Blame it on the Bossa Nova”, but all hell broke loose when Covid-19 created havoc. Haha! Oh well, like they say, all good things must come to an end. It has been two years since we last jammed. Anyway. It’s not over for me. Life has to go on and the sound of music continues for me. 

Music keeps the mind active, and with that in mind and also to stay sane, I am still in touch with my guitar and ukulele, jamming occasionally at places of friends. After a storm, there will be sunshine. 

Here’s a little poem composed by myself. 

In body and mind, continue to be strong,

As the road to recovery is nothing but long. 

Parts if played well, all will be fine,

Darkness will disappear, say hi to sunshine. 

Times are trying, they will pass,

Believe that not all bad occurrences will last. 

Wishing good blessings to each and everyone of you,

May what you dream and wish for come true. 

Best wishes,

Anna Law

Vincent Tan and wife Anna.

Anna accompanying Andy

during lunch fun in 2019.

Images: An Anna Law Collection/Copyrights Reserved.